15 hours ago | Hitfix | See recent Hitfix news Ľ"It [has] the most shocking ending ever and there should be a law passed stating that anybody who reveals the last five minutes of this film should be hung from their neck until dead," said Stephen King of The Mist, Frank Darabont's adaptation of his classic novella. He wasn't kidding! While many appreciated the bleaker-than-bleak denouement of the 2007 horror film -- which I will not reveal here for fear of being lynched -- many others, myself included, were not particularly keen on Darabont's version (it bears mentioning that King's novella ended on a more hopeful note). †With today's news (via Variety) that Spike has ordered the pilot for a TV series adaptation of the book, I'm here with a friendly reminder that people are still not over the ending of this damn movie. So not over it, in fact, that even in the days and weeks and months preceding today's Ľ

- Chris Eggertsen

Frank Darabont was one of the early producers of The Walking Dead but left during or immediately after the first season. In The Mist he cast two actresses, Laurie Holden and Melissa McBride who went on to large roles in The Walking Dead. Laurie was killed off early on but Melissa is still there (Carol) and is the longest surviving cast member along with Andrew Lincoln and a few others from season one. Bill Sadler is also in the movie.

The Mist plays often on cable and I usually watch part of it, especially the ending, mentioned above,whose ending I will reveal, because who hasn't seen it by now ? I've never read the book so don't know how King's ending is more "hopeful". In the movie Thomas Jane's character has to shoot the four other people in his car after they escape from the grocery store and drive into the Mist. He only has four bullets in his gun. The others want him to shoot them because they see no hope of surviving in the brutal world of The Mist. I have always thought that something happened to open a portal to another dimension/world and allowing the monsters through to this world.

As they drive slowly through the Mist the ground starts to shake. They look up through the windshield and see a 5-6 story high, six legged monster crossing the road ahead of them, bellowing loudly. It ignores them but the passengers see it as confirmation that they can no longer survive in that world. Thomas Jane then shoots them, a mother and her young son, an elderly couple. He then steps outside and screams for them (the monsters) to come and get him.

But nothing happens, and then he hears the sound of engines coming down the road. The Mist begins to clear and he sees an armored Army column coming down the road with soldiers with flame throwers burning monsters along the road and refugees in trucks, Melissa McBride being one of them. He realizes that the dangers of The Mist are over and life can return to normal, but he has just murdered four people unnecessarily.

He sinks to the ground , sobbing. †.....The End. A classic King ending, I thought, but apparently not so bleak in the book.

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